Device for utilizing the power of waves.



M. Genna.

DEVICE FR UTILIZING THE POWER 0F WAVES.

(Application med Apr. 12, 1899.) (No Model.) 5 Sheets-Sheet I.

Patented May I4? |90I.

.Figi 'Ia Ziyi* No. 674,002. Patented May I4, I90I. M. GEHRE.

DEV ICE FOR UTILIZING THE POWER 0F WAVES. (Application filed Apr. 12, 1899.) (No Model.) 5 Sheets-Sheet 2.

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No. 674,002. Patented May I4, |90I.

m. Genna. l DEVICE F03 UTlLlZlNG THE POWER 0F WAVES.

(Application led Apr. 12, 1899.)

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DEVICE FUR UTILIZINGy THE 'PUWER 0F WAVES.

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No. 674,002. Patented may I4, |001. M. GEHRE.

DEVICE FOR UTILIZING THE POWER 0F WAVES.

(Application filed Apr. 12, 1899.)

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llrviTnp STATES PaTnNT @Tricia MAX GEI-IRE, OF RATH, GERMANY.

UEWGE FOR UTlLIZlNG THE POWER OF WAVES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 674,002, dated May 14, 1901.

Application ined April 12. 1899.

To all whom t may concern,.-

Beit known that I, MAX GEHRE, engineer, a subject of the German Emperor, residing at Rath, near Dsseldorf, in the German Empire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wave- Motors; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Known devices for utilizing or accumulating the power of the waves of the sea, and in which the waves act by means of ratchetgearing for rotating a shaft, work with uninterrupted movement-for instance, for compressing air for driving purposes and the like. On the contrary, in the ratchet-gearing which forms the object of the present invention an automatic releasing or disconnection takes place periodically in such a way that the power accumulated by a number of ratchet movements is utilized for a longer backward movement, by means of which an electric current may be generated by suitable devices. For this object the ratchet-gearing is subjected to the action of a releasing mechanism in such a way that after a given rotation of the ratchet-wheel the ratchetgearing, by means of a releasing mechanism, is released or disconnected, with the object of producing by the action of a weight or a spring the backward movement of the ratchet-wheel by which the releasing mechanism is returned to its initial position and the ratchetgearing is again engaged for another number of forward movements.

^ In the accompanying drawings, Figure lis a sectional front View of the ratchet-gearing, with the releasing mechanism, when the ratchet-pawl and the stop-pawl are engaged. Fig. 2 is a side view of the same; Fig. 3, a diagrammatic representation on a reduced scale; Fig. e, a front View of the lower part of the device, on an enlarged scale, with the catch engaged; Fig. 5, a side View of same; Fig. 6, a side view'with the pawl disengaged from the ratchet-gearing5 Fig. 7, a side view of a modification of the ratchet-gearing; Fig. 8, a front view of the lower part of the arrangement, on an enlarged scale, with the pawl engaged; Fig. 9, a side View of same,

Serial No. 712,698. (No model.)

and Fig. lO a side View of the same form of construction with the pawl disengaged.

The shafts is mounted in a floating framework a, on which shaft a ratchet-wheel d and a cord or belt drum or pulley e are mounted. A fioat b, mounted on an arm, pivots or turns on the shaft s when the said float is lifted or dropped by the waves of the sea. A pawl c is mounted on the arm of the float l) in such a way that until its release takes place on the fall of the float ZJ it carries with it the ratchetwheel cl. On the descent of the fioat b a stoppawl or catch 7o, fixed to a spindle t, prevents the backward rotation of the wheel d. By

the forward rotation of the wheel d by means of the pawl c under the action of the iioating body, which forward movement is repeated for a certain period, and the stepbystep rotation of the shaft s the cord or chain is wound upon the drum @and the weighttraised accordingly until the release of the pawl c and catch ft takes place. For this object the pawls n c and 7i: are connected with one another by means of an armf, fixed on the spindle of the pawl c, a link g', an elbow-lever g2, pivoted on the frame a, a link g3, and a weighted arm h, fixed on the spindle t', in such a way that both pawls are released simultaneously. 0n the two pawls being operated the link g becomes to a certain extent the ratchet-shifting arm, which pivots on a pin tt on the elbow-lever g2, said pin lying coaxially with the shaft .Both in the link g and also the link g3 there is al- -lowed sufficient play for the pins of the arm fon the spindle of the pawl c and the pins e of thereleasing-arm Z of the pawl 7i; as required for the ratchet and stop movement of both pawls.

By means of a pawl q or catch adapted to slide up and down in the frame o, an arm 'a (see Figs. 2 and 5) is kept locked during the operation of the pawls c and lc, which arm is mounted ou a spindle m, located in the frame, which spindle carries a weighted arm o, fixed to the spindle and adapted upon release of the arm n to rotate the spindle, and thus move the arm n to a depressed position. After about one revolution of the 1'atchet\vheel (l this pawl q is released by means of a projection r' on the said wheel (l. The pawl or catch q is formed with a curved face on its IOC) under side, so that it may be engaged and raised by said projection. The two arms n and o then turn, and the weighted arm o 4encounters apin zon the releasing-arm Z. This arm is also fixed to the spindle t', so that when its pin is struck by the weighted arm o the arm Z is forced forwardly, thus rotating the spindle t' and depressing the pawl 7c to a point where it is out of engagement with the ratchet d. This movementis communicated through g3 g2 g and to the pawl c, throwing the latter forward out of engagement with the ratchet. Both pawls c and 71: are held in disengaged position by the latter being caught by a catch p, mounted in the frame, while the ratchet-wheel l is turned back by the action of the Weight t, and the movement necessary for producing electricity is transmitted. For instance, a small tooth-wheel c may be operated by means of a toothed wheel which is mounted with the ratchet-wheel d on the shaft s in order to impart the longer backward movement to a magnet and armaturecoil or other magneto-electric devices.

The apparatus is more especially adapted for producing light by electricity at sea by moving, for instance, one or more magnets along a series of coils, thereby inducing and interrupting currents for producing in a snitable circuit electric light which appears and vanishes and serves for giving signals at sea, in light-houses, 85e.

Toward the end of the backward rotation of the ratchet-wheel d a projection r2 thereon encounters the arm n and returns same and also the weighted arm o into the initial position. The upper face of the arm n engages and raises the catch q, which drops back of the arm and holds it in its raised position, while by means of a lower projection on the arm fn the catchp is turned back, as shown in Fig. 5, so that the pawl 7c is released from the catch p, and under the action of the weighted arm h the spindle rl, the pawl 7c, and the pawl care turned, and said pawls again engage the teeth of the ratchet-wheel, and the movement hereinbefore described recommences.

The form of construction shown in Figs. 7 to 10 differs from that previously described advantageously by the avoidance of thejerky action produced by the projection r2 of the ratchet-wheel. In this case the pin e of the releasing-arm Z is, as before, adapted to be engaged by the weighted arm o and throw the pawls 7c and c out of engagement with the ratchet d, and on the release of the two pawls the pawl lo is moved by the weight of the arm o, acting to rotate the spindle t', into the position shown in Fig. 10, in which it is held by the catch p, while by the action of the weight t the ratchet-wheel d is turned back. The projection fr operates, as before, to raise the catch q to release the arm n at the end of the rotation of the wheel d, and the weighted arm 0 operates as before described. The Whel is permitted to move backwardly under the in.-

iuence of the weightzf until the wheel has completed its rotation, when the cam tt,which projects internally on the rim of the Wheel toward the shaft s, engages a pin o', fastened to the weighted arm o, and thus raises this arm, and with it the arm n, until the latter raises the pawl q and engages it, as shown in Fig. 7; but the pawlsc and 7a are still held away from the wheel d by engagement of the pawl 7c with the catch p. The wheel d, however, is caused by its inertia to continue its lbackward rotation until the cord or chain begins to wind about the drum e in a reverse direction and the weight t is slightly raised. This continued backward rotation moves the wheel CZ, so that a pawl w, which is pivoted thereon, passes the catch p, the pawl yielding against the pressure of its spring l to pass over the catch. The pin 2 prevents too great an inward movement of the pawl. After passing the catch the pawl w springs outwardly, and when the wheel is again moved in a forward direction by the weight t acting against it by reason of the reverse winding of the cord the face of. the pawl w engages the catch p, as shown in Fig. 9, forcing the latter backwardly and releasing the pawl 7c, which, with the pawl c, under the action of the weighted arm h, is moved into engagementwith the wheel d, and the float b again begins to impart movement to the wheel d, as before described.

Having now particularly described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination of a wave-motor and means for storing power actuatedv thereby, with means for automatically disconnecting them after a predetermined movement to permit the power-storing means to operate independently of the wave-motor at periodical intervals for giving out the stored power.

2. The combination of a wave-motor and means for storing power actuated thereby, with means for automatically disconnecting them after a predetermined movement to permit the power-storing means to operate independently of the wave-motor at periodical intervals for giving out the stored power, and means for automatically connecting said motor and power-storing means after such independent operation of the latter.

3. A wave motor comprising a float, a ratchet, means for storing power wound up by the forward movement of said ratchet, a pawl actuated by said float for moving said ratchet forward, and means for disconnecting said pawl after a predetermined movement to permit said ratchet to be driven backward.

4. A wave motor comprising a float, a ratchet, means for storing power wound up by the forward movement of said ratchet, a pawl actuated by said iioat for moving said ratchet forward, means for disconnecting said pawl after a predetermined movement to per- IOO IIO

mit said ratchet to be driven backward, and means for rengaging said pawl at the end of said backward movement.

5. A wave motor comprising a float, a ratchet-wheel, a weight wound up by the forward movement of said ratchet, a pawl actuated by said float for moving said ratchet forward, a retaining-pawl for preventing backward rotation of said wheel, and means for disconnecting both said pawls from said wheel after a predetermined movement to permit said wheel to be driven backward.

6. A wave -motor comprising a iioat, a ratchet-wheel, means wound up by the forward movement of said ratchet, a pawl actuated by said ioat for moving said ratchet forward, a retaining-pawl for preventing backward rotation of said wheel, means for disconnecting both said pawls from said wheel after a predetermined movement to permit said wheel to be driven backward, and means' for rengaging said pawls at the end of such backward movement.

7. A wave motor comprising a fioat, a ratchet-wheel, means wound up by the forward movement of said ratchet, a pawl actuated by said oat for moving said wheel forward, a retaining-pawl for preventing backward rotation of said wheel, means for disconnecting both said pawls from said wheel after a predetermined movement, means for locking said disconnecting means in inoperative position to permit said wheel to be driven backward, and means for unlocking said disconnecting means and rengaging said pawls at the end of said backward movement.

8. A Wave motor comprising a iioat, a ratchet-wheel, means Wound up by the forward movement of said ratchet, means for r0- tating said ratchet, and a releasing mechanism for said rotating means operated by a projeotion carried b v said ratchet.

9. A wave motor comprising a float, a ratchet-Wheel, means wound up by the forward movement of said ratchet, means for rotating said ratchet, releasing mechanism adapted for disengaging said rotating means from said ratchet, a projection carried by the ratchet for operating said releasing means, and a second projection carried by the ratchet for rengaging said rotating means.

10. A wave motor comprising a float, a ratchet-wheel, means wound up by the forward movement of said ratchet, means for rotating said ratchet forwardly, and means for releasing said rotating means, a cam for operating said releasing means, and means for rengaging said rotating means with the ratchet.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

MAX GEI-IRE.

Witnesses:

WILLIAM EssENvvnIN, GEO. P. PETTIT. 

